Tempesta di Mare’s Great Books program offered a large audience a high-spirited glimpse of baroque works inspired by literature and written for the theater.   This concert was especially engaging because instruments were the stars; they alone set the scenes and related the action that would have otherwise been sung or viewed onstage. 

Henry Purcell’s opera based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream included incidental music from the wedding scene at the end of…

The chorus began the first part of the mass with an exquisitely shaped phrase on Kyrie eleison that suggested more distinctive singing in this work, a promise realized throughout the performance.  The small baroque orchestra was just as admirable and expressive, whether in tutti sections, in…

The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society (PCMS) presented baritone Jonathan Beyer and pianist Spencer Myer at the American Philosophical Society on May 3, 2013.  While most of the repertoire was standard to some extent, I particularly enjoyed Mr. Beyer’s curated song set of “popular” ballads that all confronted the theme of loneliness, concluding with Gershwin’s “Someone to…

Singing City­—An Introduction (Part 1)

On Friday, April 26, I had the privilege of witnessing the Singing City— a group comprised of mixed races, old and young telling story through narrative and song. Their philosophy since 1948 has been, “that the differences between races, religions, and cultures…

David Cohen classical & flamenco guitarist performs a 30 minute concert to benefit the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance.

Wednesday May 8, 2013 8PM EST

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Solomiya Ivakhiv was the violinist with Zsolt Bognár and Robert Durso, pianists at a chamber music concert at the Ethical Alliance on the Sunday afternoon.

The program began with the sonatina from Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit, by Bach arranged by Kurtág.  Zsolt Bognár…

Congratulations to the 2013 Knight Foundation Arts Challenge!  Here is a list of projects of specific interest to the classical music community.  Some involve classical music in a direct way, others offer programs that offer unique ways of presenting classical music, some offer general programs that may prove useful in supporting organizations.  You might want to…

It's a rare treat for me to attend a concert only a few minutes drive from my house, so I was eager to learn more about the "Music at Monica's" series at the Church of Saint Monica's in Berwyn, Pennsylvania.  The church also has an older…

Piffaro, The Renaissance Band, has developed a loyal following over many years by presenting a variety of programs focused on early music performed by talented musicians.  The audience returns because they've learned to…

The original AIDS Quilt Songbook was performed at Lincoln Center in 1992 as a musical response to the outbreak of HIV. The Songbook has been performed and modified many times over the past two decades and, like the AIDS Memorial Quilt, the Songbook is an ever-changing work, with new pieces…

This was my first time to the Esperanza Center in North Philadelphia and I was looking forward to a concert that included a number of familiar musicians and a Latino theme.  The theater was comfortable but the extremely dry acoustic of the room was better suited for movies or small groups of amplified musicians.  An…

The theater was pitch black and when the spotlights lit up the stage area it was clear that this would be a unique and deeply personal experience.  Centered around the memories of lost loved ones, the evening was not only a cause of reflection but of celebration, too.  Brief but touching thoughts were spoken by…

The German invasion of Poland, on September 1, 1939, which triggered the Second World War, would seem to have little in common with the Apollo moon landing, which took place almost 30 years later. However, these disparate historical events were the inspiration for Orchestra 2001’s contribution to the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts 2013 (PIFA). The invasion of Poland was remembered by the performance of Henryk Górecki’s Third Symphony, Op. 36, and the moon landing by George…

The Laughing Bird doesn't necessarily need to be "introduced" - they have been around in one form or another for since 2010 and we have been privileged to work with their individual members through projects with Choral Arts and The Crossing.  That said, we are terribly excited to "present" this talented vocal quartet - Leslie Johnson, soprano, Jenifer L. Smith, mezzo-soprano, Steven Bradshaw, tenor, and Colin Dill, bass - alongside members of the Piffaro consort to our Philadelphia audience…

Ahead of their upcoming chamber music concert at the Philadelphia Ethical Society, I recently interviewed Solomiya Ivakhiv, Robert Durso, and Zsolt Bognár on the music they will…

If you have not yet been to a Sunday concert at the German Society of Philadelphia on Spring Garden Street, you have been missing some excellent programs.  The Delius and German Societies joined forces on April 7 to present Mark Stone, baritone, and pianist Luke Housner and the presentation was both an intellectual and musical tour de force.  Mr. Stone has a very strong voice and has the dynamic and expressive control that makes his performances poignant and Mr. Housner’s considerable…

King’s College has an outstanding choir. Saturday’s concert affirmed its world-wide reputation for excellence.

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This year, the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts asks its audiences the question: “If you had a time machine...” Over the course of the month-long festival events will cover numerous historical events from…

This year, the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts asks its audiences the question: “If you had a time machine...” Over the course of the month-long festival events will cover numerous historical events from…

How can I describe the experience of hearing a masterpiece? Whatever I say cannot possibly convey the immense pleasure of listening to a rare musical experience.



Yannick Nézet-Séguin, speaking from the stage before the performance began, said the St. Matthew Passion had human meaning as a “story that…